Texas closet theft victim: Blackmail 'doesn't work with rich people'

Cindy Horswel, Houston Chronicle

By Cindy Horswell

Updated 12:31 pm, Tuesday, August 19, 2014

Theresa Roemer's luxury 3,000 foot closet recently appeared on Good Morning America. Roemer fears the publicity made her a target for thieves who stolen an estimated $800,000 - $1 million in bags, furs, jewelry and watches, she says.

A spiral staircase brings closet goers down from the third floor fur and hat department to hair and make up.
Photo: Chinh Phan, Chinh Phan/Neiman Marcus

A spiral staircase brings closet goers down from the third floor...

Guests apparently said, "We want to be able to have the party inside the closet." In Roemer's world their wish was her command.
Photo: Chinh Phan, Chinh Phan/Neiman Marcus

Guests apparently said, "We want to be able to have the party...

Tickets to parties in the closet are auctioned off for charity.
Photo: Chinh Phan, Chinh Phan/Neiman Marcus

Tickets to parties in the closet are auctioned off for charity.

Hundreds upon hundreds of pairs of shoes adorn the walls of the closet's second floor which also has a champagne bar and hair and make up salon
Photo: Chinh Phan, Chinh Phan/Neiman Marcus

Hundreds upon hundreds of pairs of shoes adorn the walls of the...

Jewelry is housed on the first floor, and is that a tub we see in the background? Well, why not?
Photo: Chinh Phan, Chinh Phan/Neiman Marcus

Jewelry is housed on the first floor, and is that a tub we see in...

Roemer told the Neiman Marcus blog that these antique ceremonial contract bracelets, used for marriage ceremonies in the Indian culture are some of her favorite items. They belonged to her husband’s mother.
Photo: Chinh Phan, Chinh Phan/Neiman Marcus

Roemer told the Neiman Marcus blog that these antique ceremonial...

Roemer said she first got the idea for the 3,000 square foot closet when party guests bemoaned the small size of previous dressing rooms.
Photo: Chinh Phan, Chinh Phan/Neiman Marcus

Roemer said she first got the idea for the 3,000 square foot closet...

The gigantic closet includes many designer perfumes. Some events have also featured private demonstrations by perfumer and Hennessy heir Kilian Hennessey.
Photo: Chinh Phan, Chinh Phan/Neiman Marcus

The items mailed in a manila envelope to a Houston newspaper - including a silver locket containing a swatch of brown hair - were identified Monday by socialite Theresa Roemer as part of the loot stolen two weeks ago from her now famed 3,000-square-foot closet.

Roemer, a body builder and former Mrs. Texas United America 2010, refers to her three-level closet in The Woodlands as her "she cave" where she keeps her collection of designer purses, shoes, clothes and jewelry for her herself and her charity shows. Each item is specially numbered, some still in original packaging, for her stylist to use in advising her what to wear.

Disguising his voice, the purported thief called the Houston Press newspaper to say that he or she had contacted Roemer and told her the items were fake. "I requested over half a million dollars to return her items and not expose her to the news," the caller told the Houston Press newspaper.

Roemer confirmed she was contacted last week.

She said that kind of trickery "doesn't work with rich people," and she won't pay a dime. She said she quickly identified the items in the envelope sent to the Houston Press newspaper through photographs as not being any of her valuable pieces.

She said she has some costume jewelry mixed in with her valuable pieces. Some have sentimental value like a bracelet given to her by her children on Mother's Day, and others are vintage pieces loaned by her stylist for a photo shoot.

She was thrilled the stolen item most precious to her - the silver locket with strands of baby hair from her son who died in a car crash at age 19 in 2006 - was included in the envelope.

"Every woman has a variety of jewelry that she keeps," she said, noting the thief had not returned her Rolex and Chanel watches or her $80,000 emerald ring surrounded by diamonds.

"He's just trying to blackmail me, because the closet story went viral, and he can't unload anything now," she said. "So now he can have an extortion charge added to the burglary charge when he's caught."

But she is still unable to recognize the electronically disguised voice of the thief who placed the calls. "It was a deep voice. It was scary and sounded evil," she said.

The FBI has now joined the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office in trying to solve the crime because of the blackmail attempt. Investigators are combing over the envelope with the handwritten address which was used to send the stolen items. They are looking for fingerprints or DNA evidence that could provide a clue.

Neiman Marcus featured her closet in its blog. That story was picked up by numerous morning news shows, and the thief said those shows caught his attention.

But the identity of the thief, who later went "shopping" and scooped up armfuls of items from that closet, still remains a mystery.

"I'm certain with all his strange behavior he'll be caught," she said.